A data repository stored on a computer system may contain data useful for a user. However, the data repository may be too large for the user to find the data by examining the entire data repository. Additionally, some parts of the data repository may contain information that for security or privacy reasons should not be made accessible to the user, even if other parts can be made accessible to the user. In many cases, in order to allow the user useful access to the data in the data repository, a search mechanism is provided. The search mechanism allows a user to issue a search request (also termed a search query). One or more results (if any are found) are then returned for the user. These results may include the entire data item which the user has requested. Results may also be summary results, which include only summary information which can be used to obtain the entire data item.
For example, a search for a specific author in a bookseller's data repository may yield a number of results, each with the entire data item for each book by that specific author, including, for example, title, item number, condition, price, publication date, publisher, number of pages, etc. Alternatively, where results are only summary results, each result may include only title, an item number, the condition of the book, and the price of the book. Where summary results are provided, often a way to access the complete data item (or a more complete version of the data item) is included as part of a summary result. For example, where a search is performed using a web browser, a hypertext link to the data item may be provided as part of the summary result.
A user may wish to search a number of different search repositories at the same time. However, performing such a search on a number of different search repositories at the same time presents difficulties. Different search repositories may have different search mechanisms, and a single query may not be valid for each search repository being searched. These differences create a situation in which a user must remember how to request data from each data repository.
Additionally, the results from different search repositories may be returned in different formats, and/or with different information included in each results. For example, a search for a specific author may be performed for a book on a bookseller's data repository. A search for the same author may be performed on a library system's data repository. The query may need to be sent in two different ways for these two different data repositories. Additionally, the results received may contain different information. The search results from the bookseller may include, for each result, in this order:                the title of the book,        an item number,        the condition of the book, and        the price of the book.The results from the library system may include, in this order:        the call number of the book,        the title of the book,        the author of the book,        the publisher of the book,        the copyright date of the book, and        information regarding whether the book is currently available at the library.        
Where a user wishes to collect all of the results from different data repositories, the disparity in both the information retrieved and the order of retrieval would make it confusing for a user to view all sets of results in one list.
Thus, there is a need for a way to provide a user with access to more than one data repository, simplifying the issuance of a request for data to more than one data repository and presenting data in a manner which is more immediately understandable to the user.